magisterrex Retro Games

I've been gaming since the days of Pong and still own a working Atari 2600. I tend to ramble on about retro games, whether they be board games, video games or PC games. Sometimes I digress. Decades after earning it, I'm finally putting the skills I learned while completing my history degree from the University of Victoria to good use. Or so I think. If you're into classic old school gaming, this blog is for you!

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Got a game or product you want reviewed? Send me an email! Will review board games, PC games, video games and accessories (Xbox 360 or Wii, but also new releases for classic systems - you know who you are!)

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Ever searched the Internet looking for what exactly you were missing from the old board game you pulled from your closet, only to find no succour in your time of need? Well, stop that fruitless searching through endless google results, as this week we look at the 1977 version of Milton Bradley‘s classic Game of Life.

Ever searched the Internet looking for what exactly you were missing from the old board game you pulled from your closet, only to find no succor in your time of need? Well, stop that fruitless searching through endless google results, as this week we look at the classic Gamma Two Games 1976 game The Last Spike, the game that simulates the spread of the Canadian Pacific Railway across Canada.

The game’s contents are:

The game box (with a picture of a black model steam engine appearing to come out of the box)

The game board (with a 20 space main path, as well as an inner railroad path to connect the 9 cities.)

Aside from the inner cardboard spacer, that’s it! This is a rare game from a company that found a small niche market during the board game boom of the 1970s, and certain worth playing a game or two. Enjoy!

Ever searched the Internet looking for what exactly you were missing from the old board game you pulled from your closet, only to find no succour in your time of need? Well, stop that fruitless searching through endless google results, as this week we look at Ravenburger’s 1988 magical maze game The aMAZEing Labyrinth, a game for ages 8 and up.

Box art for The aMAZEing Labyrinth

The game’s content’s are as follows:

The game box (with a graphic of a 3-D maze populated by various creatures on a yellow/orange background)

The game board (with 16 maze pieces affixed, with space for 34 more pieces.)

Four player tokens (blue, green, red, and yellow)

A deck of 24 Treasure cards, containing:

Bag of Gold Coins

Bat

Book with Clasp

Dragon

Ghost (in bottle)

Ghost (waving)

Gold Crown

Gold Menorah

Gold Ring

Helmet (armor)

Jewel

Lady Pig

Lizard

Moth

Owl

Rat

Scarab

Set of Keys

Skull

Sorceress

Spider on Web

Sword

Treasure Chest

Treasure Map

A set of 34 MAZE cards, which contain:

Creature Right-Angle Corridor Maze piece [x6], one each of the following:

Lizard

Moth

Owl

Scarab

Rat

Spider with Web

Creature Straight Corridor Maze piece [x6], one each of the following:

Bat

Dragon

Ghost in Bottle

Ghost (waving)

Lady Pig

Sorceress

Empty Right-Angle Corridor Maze piece. [x9]

Empty Straight Corridor Maze piece. [x13]

A Ravensburger product catalog.

The rules booklet (in both French and English)

Aside from the inner plastic tray that holds all the playing pieces, that’s it! Hopefully your copy of this wonderful game is complete – just don’t forget to set aside a night to play it with your family!

Ever scoured the Internet looking for what exactly you were missing from the old board game you pulled from your closet, only to find no one who could give you the answer? Well, stop that fruitless searching through endless google results, as this featured this week on What’s In That Game Box? is TSR, Inc.’s classic roleplaying game brought to board game life, The New Easy To Master Dungeons & Dragons Game.

The NEW Easy to Master Dungeons & Dragons Game

The contents of The New Easy To Master Dungeons & Dragons Game are as follows:

The game box (featuring the iconic image of Jeff Easley’s Red Dragon painting- a red dragon doing battle with a man armed with a battle axe)

The game board (a fold-up 21″ x 31 1/2″ map with 34 “room” entries)

The D&D Game Instruction Sheet: Read This Sheet First!

The DM screen (with several tables and charts on a red background)

The Dragon Card Learning Pack (stored within the DM Screen, which contains 48 double-sided pages of information on play Dungeons & Dragons, as well as four 4-page pullout adventure module chapters to help new DMs run the Escape from Zanzer’s Dungeon adventure)

Aside from a very well-laid out inner cardboard separator piece which keeps the box intact, that’s it! Hopefully this helps you find your way into enjoying “hours of high adventure in the world of cunning wizards, mighty warriors, and ferocious dragons!”

Game board for the New Dungeons & Dragons Game

Counter sheets for the New Dungeons & Dragons Game

DM Screen and Dragon Card Learning Pack for the New Dungeons & Dragons Game

Ever scoured the Internet looking for what exactly you were missing from the old board game you pulled from your closet, only to find no one who could give you the answer? Well, stop that fruitless searching through endless google results, as this featured this week on What’s In That Game Box? is Milton Bradley‘s classic dimensional game of high-rises and high stakes, Hotels.

A supply of play money in the following denominations: 50, 100, 500, 1000, and 5000. (All bank notes are marked with the number “4844” and include a picture of Milton Bradley with the title “M. Bradley” below it)

Aside from a very well-laid out inner cardboard separator piece which also provides a photo of each hotel and construction instructions, that’s it! Hopefully this will help would be hotel magnates realize their tycoon dreams!

Ever scoured the Internet looking for what exactly you were missing from the old board game you pulled from your closet, only to find no one who could give you the answer? Well, stop that fruitless searching through endless google results, as this featured this week on What’s In That Game Box? is Waddingtons‘ game of land speculation and development, the real estate game, Land Grab.

Box front of the 1981 Waddingtons game, Land Grab.

The contents of Land Grab are as follows:

The game box (there are two versions of the box lid, the 1981 version, which features a deep green background with a few buildings and the orange logo streaking outward like the the titles of the 1970s Superman movies; and the 1974 version with a cartoon aerial view of a city as the background with a white logo in large letters).

The game board, featuring three zones of undeveloped real estate lots.

Aside from the inner cardboard filler to help hold all the pieces in an orderly fashion, that’s it. Land Grab is a decent simulation of property development and speculation, but is certainly in the “More Obscure” category of board games.

Ever scoured the Internet looking for what exactly you were missing from the old board game you pulled from your closet, only to find no one who could give you the answer? Well, stop that fruitless searching through endless google results, as this week we look at Parker Brother’s wheeling and dealing used card game, Dealer’s Choice.

Dealer's Choice game from Parker Brothers.

The contents of Dealer’s Choice are as follows:

The game box (with a picture of a fast-talking used car salesman working a deal to sell a corvette to a little old lady).

The Organizer (a red circular plastic tray with a picture of the little old lady taking the corvette out for a test drive, with nine slots to fit the various game papers inside)

Five Blue Books (these are the pricing guides to use to determine the value of the cars you deal)

Ten Value Cards (these are inserted into the Blue Books and have 24 random vehicles and values ranging from Junk to $10,000)

45 Dealer’s Choice Cards, consisting of:

BUY Buy a car from Auto Exchange for $200. [x3]
BUY Buy a car from Auto Exchange at 1/2 List Price. [x2]
BUY Buy a car of your choice from any dealer for 1/2 List Price. [x2]
BUY Buy a car of your choice from another dealer. [x5]
CANCEL Cancel one Insurance Policy of another dealer. [x2]
CAR STOLEN Force another dealer to return one of his cars of your choice to the Auto Exchange. [x3]
COLLISION Force another dealer to return one of his cars of your choice to Auto Exchange or he may pay repair bill of 1/2 List Price to bank and keep the car. [x3]
FIRE Car destroyed. Force another dealer to send one of his cars of your choice to Auto Discard. [x3]
FORCE SALE Force another dealer to buy one of your cars of his choice. [x2]
FREE Receive one free Insurance Policy. [x2]
LOT CLOSED No deal required. May be used to cancel either a “FORCED SALE” or a “BUY” card when it is played on you. [x2]
SELL Sell a car for Blue Book price. [x5]
SELL Sell a car for List Price. [x4]
SELL Sell a car for List Price plus $2000 [x2]
SELL Sell a car for List Price plus $3000
STOLEN CAR FOUND Pay towing fee of $100 to bank and return car to your lot.
TAKE Take a Dealer’s Choice card from any player. [x2]
TAX Force another dealer to play Excise Tax of $5000 to the Bank.